The Great 1929 Stock Market Crash: A Short History

By Doug West

The decade after the First World War saw a period of growing prosperity and new freedoms for the average American. With help of clever bankers, brokers, and a supply of easy money the average man and woman found their path to wealth – the stock market. As moths are drawn to a flame, so were the gullible investors lured to the securities exchanges seeking to turn their pennies into dollars. For years the market just went up and up, and as the lyrics of the song of the time echoed, “Blue skies, Smiling at me, Nothing but blue skies, Do I see.” By the end of the decade the cracks in the market and the teetering U.S. financial system would engulf the stock market, taking with it, billions of dollars and the hopes and dreams of so many Americans. As reported in the New York Times the crash came quickly, “It came with a speed and ferocity that left men dazed, The bottom simply fell out of the market...” Just as if a door closed and another one opened, America went from a time of exuberance to a time of despair – the Great Depression was unfolding, spreading misery in its wake. This is the story of the men and women that rode this wild stock market roller coaster and the changes that occurred in the market as a result.
The book “The Great 1929 Stock Market Crash: A Short History” gives a concise look at the events leading up to the 1929 stock market crash and the aftermath. To illustrate the story there are numerous pictures of the people, places, and events that were part of this historic collapse. In addition the book contains: a list of reference books for further reading, a timeline of the market crash that puts the events and that period of history in sequence, and a section that contains short biographical sketches of the key individuals in the book.

30-Minute Book Series
This is the 46th book in the 30-Minute Book Series. Books in this series are fast-paced, accurate, and cover the story in as much detail as a short book possibly can. Most people complete each book in less than an hour, which makes the books in the series a perfect companion for your lunch hour, a school project, or a little down time.

About the Author
Doug West is a retired engineer and an experienced non-fiction writer with several books to his credit. His writing interests are general, with special expertise in history, science, and biographies. Doug has a Ph.D. in General Engineering from Oklahoma State University.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Doug West
• Release date: Jun 17, 2020
• ISBN: 9780463454428

Doug West

Doug West is a retired engineer, small business owner, and an experienced non-fiction writer with several books to his credit. His writing interests are general, with expertise in science, history, biographies, numismatics, and “How to” topics. Doug has a B.S. in Physics from the Missouri School of Science and Technology and a Ph.D. in General Engineering from Oklahoma State University. He lives with his wife and little dog “Millie” near Kansas City, Missouri.

Book preview

The Great 1929 Stock Market Crash

A Short History

By Doug West, Ph.D.

The Great 1929 Stock Market Crash

A Short History

By Doug West, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2020 Doug West

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Table of Contents

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1 - The Roaring Twenties

Chapter 2 – The Money Men

Chapter 3 - The Stock Market Rises, The Economy Falters

Chapter 4 - The October 1929 Stock Market Crash

Chapter 5 - The Beginning of the Great Depression

Chapter 6 – The Regulation of Wall Street

Timeline of the Stock Market Crash of 1929

Biographical Sketches

References and Further Reading

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Additional Books by Doug West

Preface

Welcome to the book, The Great 1929 Stock Market Crash: A Short History. This book is volume 46 of the 30 Minute Book Series and, as the name of the series implies, if you are an average reader this book should take less than an hour to read. Since this short book is not meant to be an all-encompassing history of the 1929 stock market crash, you may want to know more about this dark period in history. To help you with this, there are several good references at the end of this book. I have also provided a Timeline, in order to link together the events leading up to the stock market crash and the aftermath. A section titled Biographical Sketches contains brief biographies of some of the key individuals in the book. Thank you for purchasing this book. I hope you enjoy your time reading about the 1929 stock market crash.

Doug West

June 2020

Introduction

The 1920s was a decade of a wonderful ride up for stock market speculators, until it all came crashing down in October 1929. In the course of a few short weeks billions of dollars were lost and thousands of investors were completely wiped out. The explosion of personal debt, low wages, a struggling agricultural industry, overextended speculators, and banks on the verge of insolvency were all factors that helped push the market over the edge. After reaching a peak in early September 1929, stock prices began to decline gradually throughout the month. In October, the pace of the market selloff quickened and panic spread amongst the traders and investors, causing a record drop in the market during the last week of the month. As the market dropped precipitately, investment bankers jumped in to stabilize the market through purchases of large blocks of stock; this caused only a short pause in the avalanche of selling.

After the market reached a crescendo of selling on a day now known as Black Tuesday, prices of stock stabilized and began to rally for a few months, then the realities of the ensuing depression became clear, driving prices lower. In less than three years the Dow Jones Industrial Average would set the low for the twentieth century, down nearly 90 percent from the September 1929 high. The crash was not the only cause of the Great Depression, but it accelerated the economic convulsions that were felt around the